Shinobi in a Wizard's war
by Lady Threarah
Summary: When Harry sees his godfather die, he decides that enough is enough, and no one else is going to die because of him. He travels to the Hidden Countries and hires our favorite ninja to help him end the war once and for all.
1. Chapter 1

A.N.: Hey all, this is Lady Threarah. I got a little tired of reading HP/Naru crossovers where the shinobi are hired to either a) learn new stuff or b) protect Harry, so I thought I'd try things my way. Now bear in mind that this takes place right after Harry's fifth year (HBP didn't happen, though I will be incorporating things from the sixth book into this fic) and when the Naruto gang are around 16. If a few things don't make sense, don't worry; they will be explained in the next chapter, which as of now is half written.

Disclaimer: I don't own either Harry Potter or Naruto. If I did, I wouldn't be working retail five days a week.

Chapter one

Tsunade, also known as the Fifth Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, was enjoying a relatively peaceful day in the middle of July. The sun was out, most of her paperwork was finished, and the missions she was handing out to the ninja were accepted without complaint. In reflection, she should have known that it was too good to last.

Without any sort of warning, short of the faint tingling in the back of her head alerting her to a particularly strong presence, the doors to her office burst open, and small black blur followed by three ANBU bounced about the room. Tsunade arose from her chair, confused but ready to defend herself and her people if needed. There was a reason she had assumed the position of Hokage, and it had nothing to do with her being a girl. It wasn't necessary, however, as they stopped moving in front of her desk, her three warriors barely restraining what appeared to be a young boy. His short black hair was wild, most likely from the running and dodging he had been forced to do, and his unusually brilliant green eyes burned into her blue ones from behind thick glasses.

The Hokage had seen many strange things in her time, but seeing three of her best ANBU straining to their limits to keep a grip on one boy who was shorter and skinnier than Naruto was something that she only expected from the noisy ninja himself. To her, this boy couldn't be more than twelve years old, and yet he didn't seem to be having any difficulty in ignoring those who clung to him. His voice dragged her from her thoughts and back to reality.

"You are the Hokage, right?" somehow, the formidable woman got the impression that this wasn't his first language, though he spoke without an accent. Her face grew stern. "I am. What business do you have tearing through my office without an appointment?"

"My name is Harry. I want to employ your best people for a job."

"My best people? That won't be cheap, boy." The faint tingling persisted in the back of her skull, and she squinted, forcing back the beginnings of a headache.

He flinched at her tone, (or was it something she said?), but didn't back down. With seeming ease, the shrugged the elite ninja off of him, and pulled a very small box out of his pocket. The ANBU tensed and took a step back, their eyes darting between the Hokage and the boy. Harry whispered a word, (the ninja immediately reached for their knives and _shurikin_) and dropped it at his feet.

Tsunade could only stare as the box began to defy logic, not to mention physics, and grow bigger and bigger, until it stood as tall as her waist, and as the tingle morphed into a dull throb. Harry reached over and removed the lid, revealing it to be full of gold and silver, precious and semi-precious gemstones, some the size of the Hogake's fist. Sucking in a deep breath, and hoping that she didn't look as stunned as she felt, she sat down heavily in her extra cushy chair. Slowly, oh so slowly, her eyes rose to meet his burning green ones, and she saw triumph, happiness, sorrow, and desperation.

"What exactly did you have in mind?"

Naruto Uzumaki grumbled to himself as he trudged through the building leading to Tsunade's office. Today was one of the few days that he had to himself, and he had meant to spend it sunbathing before the predicted rain fell late in the afternoon. Sadly, it was not meant to be. The old hag just _had_ to pick _now_ to summon him, knowing full well that he was on a vacation of sorts. The injustice of it all made him _and_ the Kyuubi grumble about lost opportunities and soon to be hurting old hags.

He was still muttering mutinous phrases under his breath when he shoved the door to her office out of his way and stopped just past the threshold. It appeared that he wasn't the only one to be summoned today.

Shikamaru stood by one of the few windows, cloud watching and basically ignoring most everyone else in the room, especially the looks Temari was sending his way. Kiba, Choji, and Lee were arguing, (something about the springtime of youth), with Kankuro staring at them like they had and were _still_ growing extra appendages. The blond noticed him try and edge away discreetly, only for Lee to snag his arm and drag him closer, stating that this was something that he needed to hear before the winter of his maturity got the best of him. Neji and Gaara stood on opposite sides of the room, glaring daggers at each other, while Tenten was demonstrating to Hinata the best way to hit land a bulls-eye with any sort of projectile available. Shino was simply his usual (creepy!) quiet self, and Sasuke was sitting in one of the few chairs, trying to meditate despite the noise his peers were making. Besides them, there was no one else in the room.

"What the hell-" was all Naruto got out before he was bowled over by two excited females, namely Ino and Sakura. They were jabbering non-stop, (and in that crazy, nonsensical _girl-speak_ on top of that), and failed to notice the irate blonde they had nearly trampled in their haste. Which was quite an accomplishment, since Naruto knew everything there was to know about gaining attention, and he was at that moment voicing his ire at both girls.

All noise ceased, however, when the Hokage entered the room from a previously unnoticed side door, followed by several instructors and team leaders. The adults were silent they arranged themselves in a half circle behind her overstuffed chair, and Tsunade took the time to take a fortifying breath. This mission had the potential to go horribly wrong, and there was the chance that some of those present would not return. It was, she decided to herself, a good idea that the younger ninja would be given the chance to back out while they still could.

"Everyone here?" she asked, looking around the room. The Hokage didn't bother putting on a smile, knowing that it would only set her favorite knucklehead off, and waste the client's valuable time. She was satisfied, however, with what she saw, and continued. "Obviously, you have all been called here for a reason. A client has requested the aid of the best Konoha could offer. He also needs the ninja to be young, so as not to gain too much attention from his enemy. I will tell you this right now; this is a strictly volunteer mission for those of you under the age of seventeen. If you do not wish to partake in this, you do not have to, and no one will blame or fault you for backing out."

The younger half of the room exchanged glances with one another, completely puzzled at the actions of their leader, before Sakura found the courage to speak. "What exactly _is_ this mission, Hokage-sama?"

Tsunade shifted slightly in her seat before answering. "Those of you who choose to comply will be traveling with a few of the adults in this room. You will have to pass through a dimensional barrier, then make your way halfway across the world, infiltrating a war-zone of a sensitive nature. Once there, you will not be able to trust anyone except each other, and your employer, whom you will meet in a minute. It will be your job to aid your employer in any way you can, and take orders from him as though he was your squad commander. You will be required to kill, repeatedly and swiftly, and you will have to agree to fight to receive more details."

In the silence that followed, the ninja could clearly hear a soft noise from the next room, giving a few of them quite a start. Akamaru sneezed, and began to back away toward the exit, whimpering quietly. Immediately, Kiba spoke up. "That's all the reason I need. I'm leaving." And he took his dog with him as he left. Kankuro was next to retreat, nodding to his brother and sister. "As much as I'd like to accept this mission, I'm afraid that I have to report in to the Kazekage. Best of luck." The last to leave was Choji, who shifted from foot to foot nervously. "Family business." He muttered, before dashing after the other two. Nobody else made a move to leave, making the Hokage smile to herself in quiet pride of her people.

"Alright then. From the rest of you, you shall have four adults looking over you. They are Kakashi Hatake, Gai Maito, Anko Mitarashi, and Jiraiya. Now, we'll introduce you to your employer." She stood, and those who names were called followed her, as did the remaining teenage ninja. Silently, and curiously, (Naruto had his jaw clenched so as to keep his questions to himself, and Lee shed tears of joy over the young strength of his comrades) they entered the side room to see a young boy, maybe twelve years old, sitting in a patch of sunlight, meditating. Everyone spread out into a half circle, with Tsunade walking toward the boy who gave no indication of noticing them.

"Harry," she called to him, but he didn't so much as twitch. Frowning at his disregard of the people he actually _needed_, she tried it again, a little louder this time. Still, he was unresponsive, and, finally annoyed by his rude behavior, Tsunade reached out a hand to grip his shoulder. She squeaked in surprise (everyone else either did the same or jerked a step back in shock) when her hand passed through his shoulder as though he were nothing more than a ghost.

There was a faint snickering from near the door they entered, and instantly all eyes were focused on the source as each ninja ruthlessly squished their initial urge to scream and readied themselves for battle. Sitting above and to the right of the door was an exact replica of the boy in the patch of sun, except for the fact that this one was alert, and laughing to himself. He gave the ninja a cheeky smile as he jumped down from the top of the bookcase, committing their comical expressions to memory. "Sorry about that." He didn't look _or sound_ sorry in the least. "There have been way too many attempts on my life for me to just sit out in the open like that." He waved his hand, and the image vanished, peaking all of their interests. "Now then, Madame Hokage. Are these the ninja I will be taking back with me to England?"

"Yes, Harry-san. These are the best Konoha has to offer within the age range you requested."

"Good." Slowly, the boy looked at each teen in line, his face giving no clues as to what he was thinking. When he stood in front of Shino, the quiet boy paled at what he could sense and took a step back. "…Y-you…" he sputtered, trembling violently and unable to finish his sentence. Harry gave him a sad smile, pushing his glasses further up his nose. "You can sense it." It wasn't a question. Shino gave him a short nod and gulped, though his trembling didn't cease even though the boy continued past him and down the line.

The other ninja were worried. Shino _never_ looses his cool like that! Hell, he never looses his cool, _period! What in the nine hells is this kid?_ Harry paused before Gaara, frowning. The red head glowered at him, obviously not impressed with what he saw. "What are you looking at, _gaijin_?" the wizard didn't bat an eyelash at the other's barely veiled hostility. "You need to get more sleep. You look like a raccoon with those circles around your eyes." Everyone in the room paled at that statement. Except for Gaara; he simply looked like he had been slapped with a brick wall. The boy was apparently oblivious as to the impact his innocent and casual statement had on the rest of the room as he continued walking down the line.

"There's something weird about you," murmured Neji when Harry stopped to stare into his eyes. The wizard sighed, and hung his head. "I know, I know. My friends tell me that on a daily basis. You'll get used to it in time." Harry gave him a weak smile as he turned away and continued down the line. The Hyuuga blinked, startled that the boy didn't snarl or sneer at the comment, then decided to let it go, for now.

Hinata gave him an unintentional shock. The boy did a double take at her eyes, then glanced back to Neji, then back to her. She smiled down at him, (for he was a short person) and answered his unasked question in his eyes. "Neji-san and I are cousins." Understanding dawned on his face, and he moved on. Shikamaru sighed to himself as the wizard passed without a word, earning an elbow to the ribs from Ino on his other side.

Harry didn't say anything to Sakura, but he did raise an eyebrow at her hair color, causing Sasuke to scowl at him. The boy noticed, and stared at him with his expression carefully innocent. "You know, you shouldn't pick a fight with someone unless you know for sure that you can win." He murmured, making the teen twitch, but hold his tongue. Naruto wasn't so restrained. "Oi!" he screeched, glaring death at the wizard. "No one can talk to Sasuke-teme like that but me! Understand?" Harry had stared at him, his eyes wide, before breaking out into laughter. The other teenagers stepped away from him nervously, several reaching for their _kunai_ knives in various locations, subtly preparing themselves for a fight.

After several minutes, Harry managed to get himself under control. "Thanks," he said, still gasping for air. "I needed that."

"No problem," mumbled the blond, still eyeing him warily, wondering what he had said to set him off. When Harry had wiped away the last of his tears, he looked up into the blonds' eyes. "It's always a treat to see such loyalty between friends. I know I shouldn't have laughed, but you reminded me of one of my friends. He had said the exact same thing to me during our childhood, over a mutual friend of ours. Thanks, though, for making my day." He took a step back, then folded his legs under him, and sat in the patch of sunlight. "Alright everyone, sit and get comfortable. I have a lot of explaining to do, and not a lot of time to do it in." The ninja complied, curious, and when everyone was settled, Harry began.

"The first thing you have to know is that I come from a land where magic exists. No, don't look at me like that," he smiled, holding up a hand to stall any forthcoming protests. "I'm serious. After all, all stories begin with the truth, right? Anyway, I attend a school called Hogwarts, where a select few teachers gather to instruct children to teenagers how to use magic. Not everyone is born with the ability; in fact, I'm told that less than ten percent of the population is born with magic. The school I attend is not the only magic school in existence, but it's the only one that I've seen personally.

"Hogwarts is where you will be stationed until further notice. Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster, does not know that I am here. He doesn't even know that this place exists, which will keep your people safe from retribution. Although he has sent out letters to his contacts in other countries, with the warning that our enemy, Voldemort, has been resurrected. I'll get into him more, later.

"Now I know that Dumbledore has already hired on a new Defense teacher, but I don't know who that is just yet. All of you will be posing as students and teachers from different magical schools around the world, coming to Hogwarts to promote 'International Magical Cooperation'." A few of the teenagers snickered at the quotation marks he made in the air. "My contact has already seen to the letters and documentation needed for this, so you will only need to look everything over before you start interacting with wizards from England.

"I'm going to have to split you up, with three students to a teacher, and one such group from a different school from the last. I don't care if you're separated from your best friend from childhood; you will remain in the group I put you in. Actually _at_ Hogwarts is where things get complicated. While we are there_, you must act like you don't know me or the others from different groups._ If word were to get out that we knew each other, then your cover would be blown, and could prompt an attack. Do you understand?" The teenagers nodded, wondering just who they were going to have to pretend to know and who they were going to ignore. Shikamaru scowled to himself. _Great, more complications. This is getting to be too bothersome._

The wizard continued. "Since there's twelve of you, I'd say four groups of three should do it. And since most of the people back home judge upon appearances, I'm afraid I'll be separating you primarily by appearance, then by personality. Don't worry, you'll understand when you're at Hogwarts." He paused, looking between their faces, before a frown pulled at his. "I think I'm going to need to write this down." Absently, he began to pat his hips, searching for a pen and paper. After a moment and a soft 'aha!', he produced a slightly wrinkled sheet of parchment and a very rumpled quill. He paused for a moment to suck on the tip of the quill, before pointing to the first teenager in the row. "All right, you first."

"Yes! My name is Rock Lee, and-" he was cut off by the girl sitting next to him jabbing her elbow into his ribs. "Don't mind him. My name is Mitsurugi Tenten."

"…Aburame Shino."

"My name is Temari, and this is my brother, Gaara. We don't really have surnames." She seemed a little uncomfortable to admit that to a room full of people, but no one was stupid enough to make fun of her or her brother for it. Harry frowned, and looked up from his writing. "No last name, eh? Don't worry, we can work around that." He then gestured to the next person in line.

"Hyuuga Neji."

"Ano… Hyuuga Hinata."

"And like you said, you're cousins." He made a note on the paper, and glanced up. "Next."

"Yamanaka Ino." Her smile bordered on flirtatious.

"Nara Shikamaru." Said the bored teen.

"Haruno Sakura."

"Uchiha Sasuke."

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto!" proclaimed the blond, grinning like a loon. Harry returned his smile, then looked to the adults. "And you four?"

"Mitarashi Anko." _Her_ grin was downright vicious.

"Maito Gai." Harry was nearly blinded by the light reflecting off his too white teeth.

"Hatake Kakashi." The man didn't even look up from his book.

"And I am the great Jiraiya, one of the three legendary-" he was cutoff with an elbow to his gut courtesy of Tsunade. "Hush, you old fool," she growled, which was pretty impressive for a human, and forced the man to plaster an innocent expression on his face and switch his mind set to his best behavior. Several of the teenagers repressed their urge to giggle madly, though only a few of them could keep the smiles off their faces. Harry's face was suspiciously innocent.

"Ah, hmm," he mumbled to himself, making long scrawls and short ticks with the quill. A few moments passed with the wizard 'hmm'-ing, and making strange faces, occasionally looking up at the shinobi before returning his attention to the thick sheet of paper. Hinata bit her lip to prevent the giggles from escaping.

"Okay, I think I've got it. Uchiha, Haruno, and Mitsurugi. The three of you are from the Mahou School of Magic, in Japan. Your accompanying teacher is Kakashi. Both Hyuuga's and Gaara, you're from Durmstrang, in Bulgaria. Your teacher is Mitarashi." He paused to think for a moment, then scribbled something on the parchment. "Nara, Aburame, and Yamanaka, you're from Beauxbatons, in France. Your teacher is Jiraiya. And as for Uzumaki, Rock, and Temari, you're from Salem, in America. Rock, since the teacher with you is Maito, would you object to having him pose as your father?" When Lee voiced his joyful opinion at having "The Beautiful Green Beast" as his father, Harry decided that it wasn't a problem, and made a further note on the paper.

Sakura shifted in her seat. "Harry-san," she began a little nervously, and managed to summon up her courage when the boy peered at her through the thick lenses of his glasses. "You mentioned a man named Dum-er, ano…"

"Dumbledore? If it helps, a lot of people refer to him as 'Bumblebee'." The girl would have thought he was teasing her if it wasn't for the serious expression on his face. She swallowed, and continued. "Yes, him. You said you would explain more about him. Who is he, really?"

Harry's face became completely blank, though his eyes were as bright as ever. The ninja shivered where they sat as a violent wave of killing intent washed over them before receding into nothingness. Slowly, the young wizard sucked in a breath. "Dumbledore is the Headmaster of Hogwarts, meaning he has the final say in who attends, teaches, and visits the property. In the rest of the wizarding world, he is respected and loved as the leader of all that is good. What few people know, is that the only thing that separates him from Voldemort is the fact that he doesn't torture Muggles. He does, however, use brainwashing techniques, blackmail, bribes, and will throw his followers lives away as if they are nothing more than a used handkerchief. Exactly like the madman he claims to oppose." He paused, sucked in a deep breath, then continued.

"Voldemort, on the other hand, is honest about his motives. He is the man we are fighting; the man you will help me kill. Like most madmen bent on world domination, he has quested for immortality, and I think he managed to succeed, on some level. Years and years ago, he attacked me, but the power bounced off me and struck him full on. It destroyed his body, but somehow his spirit… remained. I suppose he refused to pass on. Only recently did he get his body back, but he barely looks human anymore-" Harry stopped speaking as he tilted his head to the side. The room was silent for all of five seconds, then the wizard was a blur of motion. "We need to leave." Roughly, he shoved the paper and quill into his pockets, and ran a hand through his already messy hair.

"But-" began Tsunade, only to be cut off. "Now. Go home, pack only what you need. No more than two sets of clothes, and as many weapons as you can carry and conceal. I'll meet you at the gates to the village in five minutes." He rose from where he was sitting, his already fair skin paling noticeably. Glancing at the confused expression on the faces of the ninja, his only reply was, "One of my agents sent a distress signal, and I'm the closest one to help. _Go._" And he vanished.

The Fifth Hokage looked to her shinobi, who were staring at her with mild shock. "Well?" she said, making shooing motions with her hands. "You heard him. Go pack. I'll see you when you get back."

A.N.: I'll let you guys in on a little secret; reviews inspire the author to write more, so please click on the little button and tell me what you think.


	2. Chapter 2

A.N.: Hey everyone! Sorry about the wait, blame my manager... And praise my beta Yoshi for getting it back so fast! At any rate, here's the second chapter, ready for your viewing pleasure!

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own the characters, so don't waste your time.**

And just a little warning for you all, this chapter might piss off many of you. It in turn, might just make me your favorite author. I don't want to give anything away, but please, no flames...

Chapter 2

The ten minutes passed in a flurry of activity, with everyone arriving at the gates with a minute to spare. When Kakashi showed up thirty seconds before departure time, both Sakura and Naruto threw a fit. ("_You'll get here early for him, a stranger, but not for your team?" "He's paying me." "You suck, Kakashi-sensei!"_) Harry broke up the screaming by unshrinking his Firebolt, specially delivered earlier that summer by Professor McGonagall.

"Ready?" he asked, mounting his broom. Everyone nodded, eyeing him worriedly. It's not everyday you see someone straddling a broom. "Good. I hope you can keep up. This thing's pretty fast." Kicking off hard, Harry rose seven feet in the air, and streaked for the path ahead, leaving several shocked ninja behind. Gai was the first to shake himself back to reality, and when he took off, the others shut their mouths and ran after him. Out of all the ninja following, only the adults and Lee were able to keep up without pumping chakra into their legs.

The forest blazed past them in a blur of green, brown, and grey. Twice, they crossed rivers, (nearly loosing Ino in the last one), and made record time over a large hill thick with brambles (which put Tenten in a mood when her shirt was torn). After an hour of hard running through the treetops of an especially thick part of the forest, they came to a clearing heavy with battle scars and body parts. Worried, Harry halted his broom, causing the ninja following to slow and stop as well. Immediately, the adults took stock of the situation, reading the ground and trees for clues as to what happened while the _genin_ and _chunin_ caught their breath.

"Grim?" called Harry rising a little higher in the air. He twisted and turned, peering through the thick foliage, obviously looking for someone. "Grim, answer me!" there was silence, then Gai called out. "Here! Someone's alive!" the _taijutsu_ master was busy heaving large chunks of wood and debris off of a young girl, no more than seventeen, with rich auburn hair and a slender body.

She had various small cuts and bruises, and a nasty bump on her head, explaining why she was currently visiting Morpheus in his realm.

Sakura was at her side instantly, ready to put the skills she learned from Tsunade to the test. Their employer, Harry, remained in the air, praying to anyone who would listen for a speedy recovery. It had never occurred to him that she could get hurt, especially not after what he had seen her do earlier that summer.

Flashback 

_Jerking awake, though with a heavy head and an unresponsive body, Harry wondered vaguely at the sounds of chaos he heard from the normally quiet downstairs of number 4 Privet Drive. Something glass shattered from the room directly under him, then complete silence fell like a thick blanket over the house. The fact that the television seemed to be off worried the boy, so he forced his aching limbs to pull his exhausted body from where it lay on the floor into a sitting position, facing the door. The loose step at the top of the stairs creaked as someone stepped on it, and that was all the warning he got before the door was demolished by a well-placed _reductor _curse._

_A hissed "Gin! What if he was right on the other side?" reached his ears just as the intruder came into view. Harry sagged in relief as Ginny Weasley rushed to his side, followed closely by the speaker, Hermione Granger. Both girls were dressed in dark colors, with scarves around their hair and faces. Dimly, the boy noticed the smell of blood in the air, but pushed it to the back of his mind as Hermione pulled a large cloak out of a previously unnoticed bag on her back. The article of clothing was much too big for him, but he hardly cared as he was swiftly bundled up and swept into the arms of his best female friend._

_"Hu-wha?" was all he could get out of his parched throat before Ginny placed a finger on his lips, effectively halting his attempts to speak. "Just relax, Harry. Everything's going to be okay." Through his mental haze, he realized having his friends in his room meant that the Dursleys had to be out of the house. Or they were cowering in the basement, waiting for their worst nightmare to leave. Harry shifted his weight, getting himself comfortable as he was carried out of the tiny room. _

_At the foot of the stairs, Ginny stepped in front of her friends and tugged the large hood of the cloak up over Harry's head, enveloping his ears in warmth and obscuring his vision. He didn't mind though. Despite his difficulty in seeing, he noted that they were leaving through the back door, not the front, and wondered how they were going to get over the garden wall without being seen by the nosy neighbors. _

_Outside, the hood slipped a bit, allowing him a view of Susan Bones glad in draping black robes. She stood near the far wall, staring at the bricks with a small frown on her face. When Ginny sighed, she turned to look at the other girls, and nodded, before launching the scythe in her hands at the small space between Hermione and Ginny. An answering jet of gold light shot out at the same time, but Susan dove to the side, letting the hex shatter against the brick wall. The wet **shunk** from behind told Harry that the scythe had hit its mark. Whoever was behind them was now dead, and the scythe reappeared in Susan's hands. "Time to go." She smiled gently at Harry, who was still in Hermione's arms. His eyes were drawn to her hands. The blood from the scythe had them coated a deep, sticky red._

Susan groaned, drawing him out of his memories. With Sakura's help, her head injury was healed at a rapid pace, and in no time at all, she was awake, if a little groggy.

"Master?" she asked, struggling to sit up. She grew a little worried when all the faces she could see were not ones she was familiar with, but when Harry drifted into her range of sight, she relaxed.

"You're all right." The relieved expression was echoed by her voice, before she frowned. "They know you're here."

"How many?" Harry's face became closed, emotionless.

"I counted and killed thirteen here. Cousin reported in earlier, said he dealt with fifteen. Shadow wiped out maybe ten of them just before I was attacked. We haven't heard anything from Batty since yesterday morning."

"And we can't get any messages from the other side," Harry murmured, eyeing the tree line. He sighed, then looked to the ninja, who had gathered around him and Susan. "I don't know how this happened, but it looks like I was followed. We have to hurry."

"Followed by who?" asked Anko, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"They call themselves 'Death Eaters'. They're Voldemorts' supporters and followers, and needless to say, they want me dead. We should leave."

The ninja agreed, and with a little help, Susan was seated behind Harry on his broom, (_"Really now, Master, I can fly on my own." "You had a nasty bump to the head, you're not flying anywhere on your own."_), and they were off.

For the next three hours, nothing was spoken; the ninja wanted to conserve their strength for their journey and conceal their presence from the enemy. Finally, Harry called for a halt, and the lot of them rested their lungs and legs high in the forest canopy. Their employer had assured them that the Death Eaters could not climb trees as they could, and they would hear any and all approaches upon their position.

That is, until a girl with pale skin, dirty blonde hair, and two _katana's_ in her hands appeared in their midst with nary a sound. Tenten was the closest to her arrival, and was startled enough to launch several _kunai_ at the strange girl before Harry could warn her against it. The blades were deflected without so much as a grunt from the pale girl, and immediately the wizard was there, calming the shinobi down, then turning to the girl.

"Report."

"There were eleven of them. Nothing special, mostly fodder, though I thought I sensed a Ministry official among them."

Harry looked confused. "How can you tell if they work for the Ministry?"

"There is a _zirka_ in their aura; it's usually found only in someone who has subjugated a goblin." Her expression was blank, and her voice even. Harry blinked at her, then raised one hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, right above his glasses, closing his eyes in the process.

"Oh. I didn't know that."

"That's okay. You don't know how to read aura's like I do, so you couldn't have known."

"Ah, right."

After resting for another five minutes, the party set off again, resuming its break-neck pace. Which wasn't an exaggeration, considering how fast they were moving; should any of them happened to trip, and not catch themselves in time, the momentum would have sent them head over heals, and broken their necks in the tumble. Shadow, as they learned her name was, was quite capable of keeping up with the ninja, and didn't look the least bit winded when they stopped for the night. As opposed to a few of the rookie nine, who were gasping for air and standing on shaking legs.

The camp was quickly organized, with Harry, Grim, and Shadow pitching in to help the ninja (_"You don't have to help us, you know." Said Temari as she and her brother quickly and efficiently pulled their tent into its upright and proper position. Harry, who was setting up the tent he would share with both Grim and Shadow, looked puzzled. "Why's that?"_

_"Because you're the client, and if I read Tsunade right, you're royalty."_

The boy just smiled at her. "My godfather once told me that 'there's no job too dirty for a true noble'. Besides, I'm not royalty; just rich beyond you're wildest dreams.")

Once the tents were set up and sleeping arrangements were agreed upon, the fifteen teenagers and four adults gathered around the fire Sasuke had started with the help of one of his fire _jutsu_'s, and focused on the dinner that Harry had pulled out of seemingly thin air. Small talk broke out every now and again, though things didn't get interesting until after the food was gone, and watch schedules were being discussed.

"Is there anyone who would prefer a certain shift?" asked Harry, looking around at the ninja. When no answer came he shrugged. "I'll take first watch then."

"No need," said Gaara, who was staring into the fire. "I can handle the whole night."

The wizard protested. "Everyone needs to sleep at some point, Gaara. I can't ask you to stay up all night, then run with us tomorrow."  
"It doesn't matter; I don't sleep."

"Gaara," began Harry, but stopped when the other boy raised his eyes from the fire to glare into his own.

"I don't need sleep."

"Why?"

"Why isn't important," snapped Sasuke before the Sand shinobi could answer. "What is important is that you stay out of our personal business and let us do the job you hired us for."

Instantly, a pair of green eyes just as piercing as Gaara's shifted their focus from the redhead to him. "What is your problem?"

"Did you ever think that maybe there's a reason he doesn't sleep?"

"And did _you_ ever think for a moment that I was talking to him, and not you?"

Sasuke jerked back as though he'd been struck. No one, aside from the Snake-Bastard, had ever spoken to him like… like… He couldn't put it into words, and that fanned his temper to life. The wizard continued to stare at him for a long moment, then his face twisted into a sneer.

"Ah, I understand now. You're an orphan, aren't you."

"What?!"

"You think that just because your parents died that you should be pitied, and babied, and humored, because you're all alone, right?" the sneer didn't leave his face as he spoke. The Uchiha scowled.

"And what would _you_ know about death? I'll bet you were raised with a silver spoon in your mouth."

"In all honesty, Sasuke, my _entire_ _family_ was murdered simply because a power-hungry lunatic overheard the mutterings of a _stoned glory-seeker_, which resulted in my being shipped off to be raised by the most horrible and reality-challenged people I have ever had the displeasure of sharing a continent with." No longer sneering, Harry's gaze became sad, yet firm. "Don't think that just because you lost some one you love that it means you're the only one. There are thousands of people in this world who are worse off than you, and most of them refuse to believe that they need special treatment just because of that. My family is dead, Sasuke. I never got to meet anyone other than my parents; hell, I don't even know the names of my relatives, or if I had any aunts, uncles, or cousins at all. The only memory I have of my mum and dad is when they died. I've had to watch several people I cared about die, and I have to live with the fact that there is nothing I could have done to save them." His eyes grew hard again. _"So don't talk you ever talk to_

_me_ about death like you're the only person who's suffered. Because the fact is, you're not." And with that, Harry got to his feet and left the sphere of light created by the campfire.

For a few seconds, Sasuke just sat there, gaping at the space the wizard had previously been sitting in. Then Naruto sighed. "He's right, you know."

"Wha-?" the Uchiha turned his head to look at his long time friend and rival. The blond shrugged. "He's right. You're not the only person who's suffered." At the blank yet shocked expression directed at him, he tried to explain. "I never had any parents growing up, or friends for that matter. After your family was killed, everyone in the village pitied you, and spoiled you. It gave you a swelled head, though you did tone it down after you came back."

Sasuke realized what Naruto was talking about. Before the _chunnin _exams, he had thought that he was better than everyone else was, that he didn't need anyone but himself. But after the first week in Orochimaru's Hidden Village, he realized that he _wasn't_ the biggest badass on the block. He learned the hard way that he was still a rookie, still a child. Just a child trying to saddle the burdens best left to adults. The realization had humbled him, and he convinced himself to learn all he could and pass it along to Tsunade, in the hopes of lessening his punishment to a swift death. To his surprise, he was given a second chance in the village, though many of the shinobi who knew what happened were suspicious of his motives, and would have liked nothing more than to kill him and be done with it.

Swiftly, the Uchiha suppressed the memories and opened his mouth to reply, but Naruto was already on his feet and following the path Harry had taken.

"Is that true?" asked Hinata, looking to Susan for an answer. The girl nodded.

"Yes. Harry's had a rough life, and that was before the war. Believe me, he's tired of watching people die, more so of the people he cares for."

Only a few yards into the darkness did Naruto find Harry. The boy was sitting quietly, his back against a tree trunk; his eyes focused on nothing. Naruto sat next to him, and waited for the wizard to speak.

"I shouldn't have snapped at him," sighed Harry, closing his brilliant green eyes. The shinobi snorted.

"It's okay, he had it coming for a while. Now we just gotta see if he listens to you."

"Oh. So, who did he lose?"

"Everyone. He just came home one day and watched his older brother drop their father's dead body on the kitchen floor then run away. For years he had his brain stuck on revenge, but he's getting better at… what's the word? Inter-intera- ah fuck it, _working_ with people not on his team. He's only this prickly with people he doesn't know, but since we're on a mission, he'll probably try to keep himself distant."

"He sounds pleasant."

Naruto snickered at the dry tone Harry used. "Yeah, well, you just better let _me_ wake him up in the morning, okay?"

They lapsed into easy silence; the one kind of silence Naruto would tolerate. Then Harry spoke.

"Naruto, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"Why does your aura and Gaara's aura feel different from everyone else's?" stiffening, the blonde scrambled for an answer, but before he could stammer out his reply, Harry continued. "I mean, your aura's feel almost like my cousin's aura, as well as some friends of mine." He stopped to look into panicked blue eyes. "Why is there demon energy mixed in with yours?"

Seeing that he was trapped, Naruto sucked in a deep breath and took a leap of faith. "That's because I am."

Harry blinked. "What?"

"Well, around sixteen years ago, there was this fox demon tearing apart the village where most of us were born. He was so powerful, no one could kill him. So the Hokage, the fourth Hokage, found a way to seal the demon's soul into a human body and prevent the fox from wreaking havoc anymore. But there were two catches; the first was that he had to seal the demon inside a newborn human baby, and he choose me, since I had literally just been born. The second catch was that it required a human sacrifice to complete, and the fourth Hokage died as he locked the fox inside me. I didn't know I was the demon's jailer until I was twelve, and I've only been able to talk to him for three years now." Shutting his eyes, Naruto waited for the screaming and revulsion to begin.

Only, it never came. A weight settling on his lap got him to open his eyes, and he found himself face to face with the wizard. Harry didn't look frightened, or disgusted, or mad. Just surprised, and maybe a little sad. One lightly callused hand reached up and gently traced the whisker marks on the blonde's face.

"I understand," said Harry, and he leaned forward and kissed Naruto on the cheek, then whispered. "I'm a fox demon too."

A.N.: Now remember, if you kill me, you won't get to see what happens next. Just leave a review, expressing your displeasure (or joy, how ever you feel), and I'll do my best to get the next chapter out and clear the air, okay?


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